I began my day with Tai Ping Hou Kui from Seven Cups. The picking standard was slightly different this year, and the tea is even more delicious than I recall.

2012’s Taiping Houkui marks a change in style from years past. This year, two shoots of young leaves are pressed together into one hearty strip. This is a style of making Hou Kui that has appeared in just the last few years. The previous method yielded a pressed shard, 8.5 cm long, with one slightly opened bud and two or three leaves that were flattened and dried into a strip less than 1 cm wide. The new method yields a wider leaf (about 1.5cm) and presses together two sprigs of one bud and three leaves into a denser, wider strip. With this more robust strip, the tea is more durable, less prone to breakage, preserving whole leaves and thus preserving the lightness of their flavor as broken leaves will typically brew a stronger cup of tea.

The tea brews well at a higher temperature and longer times than I've used in the past, with better results than more gentle brewing. The only difficulty is that I want to use a smaller pot/gaiwan to brew the tea in a more concentrated fashion, but I'll need a tall thin pot to accommodate these leaves.

JRS22 wrote:I began my day with Tai Ping Hou Kui from Seven Cups. The picking standard was slightly different this year, and the tea is even more delicious than I recall.The tea brews well at a higher temperature and longer times than I've used in the past, with better results than more gentle brewing. The only difficulty is that I want to use a smaller pot/gaiwan to brew the tea in a more concentrated fashion, but I'll need a tall thin pot to accommodate these leaves.

Thanks for posting. This year's TPHK caught my eye and I was wondering if it was an improvement over previous years.

A fantastic cup of Hibiki-An Kuradashi Gyokuro super premium... Smooth and rich, very nice a classic aged flavor. Brewed in a Wantanabe Tozo nosaka rough clay pot. brewed at a super low temp for a longer period of time (40C for three min. to start with).

I have tried both I think; a couple years ago I had two Kuradashi gyokuro from Hibiki-an. Surprisingly, the cheapest of the 3 versions they offered was better than the most expensive, which may have gone bad (I'm not sure, but I do know the "Pinnacle" was not worth the $ at all, while the "Super Premium" was great).

I have tried both I think; a couple years ago I had two Kuradashi gyokuro from Hibiki-an. Surprisingly, the cheapest of the 3 versions they offered was better than the most expensive, which may have gone bad (I'm not sure, but I do know the "Pinnacle" was not worth the $ at all, while the "Super Premium" was great).

I have a bag of Kanro in the cupboard, looking forward to it.

Well out of the two I prefer the kanro. It is a bit more lively and just a nicer umami flavor to me. The hibiki an kuradashi is to me a classic example of that type of tea, very very sweet and what I can only describe as "smooth". I actually have the hibiki an organic gyokuro that i prefer over both of these. I have been drinking a lot of aged gyokuro this year so i may just be enjoying the fresher flavors as a change of pace.

My morning green tea today was Ippodo tenka-ichi this is a very nice, deep umami gyokuro. I enjoyed it out of my Wantanabe Tozo Kyusu in some perfect weather here in southern california. Enjoy the Autumn season everyone!!! (I am sorry for those of you who are about to experience "winter").

Well out of the two I prefer the kanro. It is a bit more lively and just a nicer umami flavor to me. The hibiki an kuradashi is to me a classic example of that type of tea, very very sweet and what I can only describe as "smooth". I actually have the hibiki an organic gyokuro that i prefer over both of these. I have been drinking a lot of aged gyokuro this year so i may just be enjoying the fresher flavors as a change of pace

Cool, thanks for letting me know. I look forward to opening the kanro...I have a feeling I will like it more as well.

My morning green tea today was Ippodo tenka-ichi this is a very nice, deep umami gyokuro.

I have a 10g sample of this one as well... it will be interesting to compare it to the cost-friendlier kanro.

Top Leaf from Mellow Monk. It is > bitter! Their suggested 167F for 3 minutes = bitter; suggestion for following infusion for 30 seconds = bitter; quick steeping in Yixing teapot = bitter.

This is much > bitter than the spinach/vegetal taste of some oolongs, which I don't prefer but still can enjoy because they also have some sweetness etc.

I've enjoyed some smooth, brothy, flavorful green tea in Sushi bars; some also have a wonderful mouthfeel. That's why I continue to venture into green tea from time to time, but I fear that I won't find one I like, especially one that is affordable. Any suggestions?

Tsukikage from IPPODO. This is my first ever matcha. Boy, I'm amazed. Grassy, creamy, a little pinch of salt taste there made me remember Boracay(Island in the Philippines similar to Hawaii). At ~$12 per 20g, that's pretty affordable if you ask me.